My diet:
Eggs. Mainly eggs. Well, I guess there are other items too. But lately, my list of staples has been getting shorter. On a semi-regular basis, I consume (besides eggs), beef, pork, butter, sour cream, mustard, mayonnaise (made with avocado oil), heavy whipping cream (in my coffee), avocado, cucumbers, spinach, red and green leaf lettuce, romaine lettuce, black olives, salsa, stevia drops, nuts, and different cheeses (lately, bleu, cheddar and jack). This is my diet. Occasionally, I vary it a bit by having turkey, chicken or fish (but that is rare) and also by adding other greens like green beans, cabbage or broccoli (and occasionally onions, green preferred). This is not because I crave greens, but rather to add variation. My semi-regularly splurges are nut butters (almond, cashew or peanut – these foods are a yummy dessert!)
I don’t keep track of my macronutrients (proteins, fats & carbs) – I would go crazy if I did that, my schedule is hectic busy right now. When I first began this journey however, I did measure and record everything. I figured that if I was going to try something so radical (as it was to me – believe me, fats were the devil’s seed), that I needed to make sure that I followed a recordable method.
The most significant result that has come out of this way of eating . . . that’s easy, I stopped napping. For years, and I mean YEARS, I regularly napped. I napped as a child, as a teenager, as a young adult, as a middle aged woman. I have ALWAYS napped. I felt like I could not help it – I was just too dang tired. I used to fall asleep in the parking lot waiting to pick up my sons from school. In the last few years, I began to feel so fatigued that I struggled to walk even up the steps of my front porch. Yet, I could run twenty plus miles in the mountains (bizarrely true) but every single time it came with a price, a crash price. The first thing that I did when I got home was sleep. It was nap time, and just like that, 3 to 4 hours in the middle of the day were gone. This was a great hardship for me. Extra recovery-sleep hours only added to the many hours I was away from family hitting these trails. We (my husband and I) tried many things to help with my trail running recovery – salts during, then replenishing calories as soon as possible after, or hot baths, or cold baths, etc., etc. Eventually, I could no longer run twenty or more miles in the mountains. I was on and off again in recovery for a long time (recovery from neuroma, back spasms, plantar fasciitis, broken arm, torn foot tendons, and then just overall weakness and fatigue).
Other significant changes since changing the way I eat are: 1) No indigestion, which was nearly a daily thing, and 2) No brain fog. So, why list my diet at the top of this post? I list it because I am pretty certain that it has much to do with my overall well-being (or at least self-perceived well-being). I can assuredly say that I am out of recovery mode. I no longer suffer from plantar fasciitis. The foot where I haven’t had the nerve surgically removed, seems to have recovered from its neuroma. I can put in strenuous hikes. I can run for several miles (not much, but it’s definitely not starting from scratch). I feel substantially stronger than I did 6 months ago. And I really have to say that I think diet is to blame.
So, with this newly found energy and mental clarity (and let us not forget, no more indigestion!), the trails are becoming increasingly more comfortable. I cannot tell you how important it is to me to get my strength back. I am actually far from where I have been strength-wise in the past, but I am much closer than I have been in a long time. Much. Thanks to a mainly ketogenic diet (and fasting and sometimes a purely carnivore diet – I know – Yikes!!), I can hit Chiquito Trail again and again, as I have for the past several months, and still love the beast.
The weather was perfect for such a tough course – nice and cool, and even a tad cold to begin. I was hoping to see water flowing in the creeks, as we had recently gone through 2 solid days of rains. The trails were wet for sure. And there were even plenty of puddles, as well as, small bits of water here and there in the creek. The moss was bright green, and the floor was littered with brown, yellow and orange leaves. Chiquita/Chiquito is a must do trail if you like trails. It is like an enchanted forest in some parts, and then gorgeous desert in other parts. There aren’t too many 9 mile courses as tough as this. It’s not straight up difficult, but those first 4 1/2 miles, they are definitely moderately difficult, lots of boulders and continual climbs. I was hoping to cut this hike significantly in time compared to my last trip on the same route. I ran some to catch up on time. And so, of course, I took a good tumble on the way back. More of that is explained slightly in my video recaps below. I really love these two trails, they fill my heart, and really just replace my anxiety with tranquility (but alas, only momentarily – that that is indeed worth it).
12/8/18 Stats
Route: San Juan Loop to Chiquito Trail, out to falls location and back (taking the other half of San Juan Loop).
9.2 miles / 14.81 km, 1,739 feet / 530 m elevation gain